TODAY IN HISTORY: Dec. 1

Today is Saturday, Dec. 1, the 336th day of 2012. There are 30 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Dec. 1, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln sent his Second Annual Message to Congress, which was read aloud by the Secretary of the Senate. In it, Lincoln called for the abolition of slavery, saying that "in giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free," and toward the end of his message, wrote: "Fellow-citizens, we can not escape history. We of this Congress and this Administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves."

On this date:

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In 1824, the presidential election was turned over to the U.S. House of Representatives when a deadlock developed between John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William H. Crawford and Henry Clay. (Adams ended up the winner.)

In 1860, the Charles Dickens novel "Great Expectations" was first published in weekly serial form.

In 1921, the Navy flew the first nonrigid dirigible to use helium; the C-7 traveled from Hampton Roads, Va., to Washington, D.C.

In 1934, Soviet communist official Sergei M. Kirov, an associate of Josef Stalin, was assassinated in Leningrad, resulting in a massive purge.

In 1941, Japan's Emperor Hirohito approved waging war against the United States, Britain and the Netherlands after his government rejected U.S. demands contained in the Hull Note.

In 1942, nationwide gasoline rationing went into effect in the United States.

In 1952, the New York Daily News ran a front-page story on Christine Jorgensen's sex-reassignment surgery with the headline, "Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty".

In 1955, Rosa Parks, a black seamstress, was arrested after refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Ala., city bus; the incident sparked a year-long boycott of the buses by blacks.

In 1969, the U.S. government held its first draft lottery since World War II.

In 1973, David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, died in Tel Aviv at age 87.

In 1989, Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev met with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican.

In 1992, in Mineola, N.Y., Amy Fisher was sentenced to 5 to 15 years in prison for shooting and seriously wounding Mary Jo Buttafuoco. (Fisher served seven years.)

Ten years ago: Colombia's largest right-wing paramilitary group declared a unilateral cease-fire in its long-running battle against leftist rebels. Russia won its first Davis Cup title by rallying to beat defending champion France 3-2. Edward Latimer "Ned" Beach, the U.S. Navy captain who wrote the best-selling undersea thriller "Run Silent, Run Deep," died in Washington at age 84.

Five years ago: Police in Wichita, Kan., identified a body found days earlier as that of Emily Sander, a missing college student whose disappearance drew added attention after the discovery she was also an Internet porn model named "Zoey Zane." (A suspect, Israel Mireles, was convicted of rape and murder and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.) Four suspects were charged in Miami in the shooting death of Washington Redskins star Sean Taylor. (One ended up pleading guilty to second-degree murder; a fifth suspect was also charged.)

One year ago: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, on a ground-breaking visit to Myanmar, challenged its leaders to continue and expand upon recent reforms, calling for the release of all political prisoners, an end to violent campaigns against ethnic minorities and a breaking of military ties with North Korea. Bobby Valentine was named the 45th manager of the Boston Red Sox. (However, he was fired after one season.)